Celtic Magic

by Amber LaShell

  He grabbed her hand and made her face him straight on, “Are you hungry?” he asked her. She shook her head no, “I had a late breakfast” she told him.

  “Can we sit in my car and talk?” he asked her.

  She nodded her head, but her heart felt as though it had dropped down into her stomach. She had heard from people before that it is never good when someone tells you they wanted to talk. They walked to the car in silence as she braced herself for what was to come. After they sat in the car and closed the door, he turned to her.

  “I really need to ask you something, and I want you to be completely honest with me.”

  She was starting to get worried, “Of course Tom, what’s the matter?” she asked him in a whisper, nearly holding her breath.

  He fidgeted with the steering wheel, no longer looking at her as she finally said, “I told my father about you, and he wants to meet you. I know that we just started seeing each other, but I really like you and want the whole world to know we are dating.”

  Abby’s heart started pounding, “You scared me Tom, I thought you were going to break up with me, not invite me to meet your father.”

  He shook his head, “No, you don’t understand, my father can be the biggest snob in public, and he insists on having a big banquet to introduce you to the family. I know you are a very shy girl, and I don’t want you to do it if you don’t want to. I can tell him to shove it if you want me to” he said.

  Abby nodded and laughed, “Of course I will do it, any excuse for a girl to get all dressed up is a good one, especially when they have a guy like you on their arm.” She said, blushing even as she said it.

  Tom smiled, looking relieved, “I’m so happy you said yes, I have never taken a girl to meet my father, so this is kind of a big deal, thank you so much.”

  Abby punched him on the arm, “Don’t you ever scare me like that again Thomas Murphy.”

  Tom laughed, “Uh oh, she used my whole name so I better be a good boy.”

  She leaned forward and kissed him, wrapping her arms around his neck.

  He pulled away smiling, “Now that’s a good way to spend a lunch break” he said, pulling her into another kiss.

  Chapter 11

  Once they closed up the store, Abby and Jasmine walked back to Jasmine’s apartment, enjoying the warm night air without talking. When the elevator doors opened to Jasmine’s apartment, Jasmine turned to Abby.

  “I’m not really in the mood to cook tonight, would you mind if we just ordered a pizza or something?” she asked her.

  Abby nodded, “Yeah sure, that will be fine” she told her as she started to walk around the apartment, just taking in all of the beautiful paintings she had on every wall. Once the pizza was ordered, they sat on the couch and started to talk.

  “What if I don’t want to be queen of the Other World, what happens then?” Abby asked her.

  Jasmine looked at her with a serious look on her face, “Ultimately that is your decision, but the only problem is the Faerie Queen. Did Aine tell you about her?”

  Abby nodded, “She mentioned her, and told me that she wanted to rule, but she didn’t get to tell me much more than that” she answered.

  “Well, you see when she was younger she was married to a male faerie who was a warrior, and they both worked for your grandmother, who was the queen at the time. Then, she found out that he had fallen in love with a goddess, and had cheated on her many times with her. She was furious and vowed a sort of revenge against the gods, though most people did not know this.”

  Abby stopped her, “How is it that you know this?” she asked her.

  Jasmine smiled, “You said that Aine told you about what I am, so you know that I am a hybrid, half god, half faerie. Well, the Faerie Queen is my mother’s sister, and when my mother became pregnant with me, she had to tell her that my father was a god. She was not happy about that and banished her from ‘Oilean na siog’, which means Island of the Faerie.”

  “Is that Gaelic?” Abby asked.

  “Yes, it is” Jasmine answered right away before returning to her story.

  “So, my aunt hated the gods, but had to play nice with them, and eventually she became the Faerie Queen. When she found out that your mother was pregnant with a half mortal baby, and that baby was to become queen someday, due to the stipulations your grandmother had put on the throne, she took that as an opportunity to finally get what she had always wanted.”

  Abby wanted to asked questions, but was too entranced to interrupt, so Jasmine continued.

  “She wanted to rule all of the magical beings, not just the fairies. There will be a war, and people could lose their lives, including you and me, but if we let her rule, the world as we know it will end.”

  Jasmine stopped as the door bell rang and she jumped up to get the pizza from the delivery boy. Once they had their pizza and were sitting back on the couch, Abby asked Jasmine the one thing that was bothering her about the story.

  “So, how exactly will the world as we know it end if the Faerie Queen were to take over? Ireland is a long way from here, and the Other World is completely unknown to the mortals” she said, using air quotes for the word mortals. It still felt a little odd to not think of herself in that way too.

  “So how would it impact us?” she continued.

  Jasmine took a bite of pizza and thought over her answer as she chewed her pizza.

  “Well, you see, the Faerie Queen has a thirst for power running through her at the moment, and if she was to become powerful enough to rule the Other World, she wouldn’t stop at just ruling the magical creatures. She wants to rule the entire world, mortals and Gods alike, and I’m pretty sure there are plenty of her evil fairies that would do her bidding and kill anyone that gets in the way.”

  For the first time Abby actually felt scared, “I can’t let her do that, but my magic isn’t even unlocked yet, and who is to say that I will even be able to use it correctly once it is unlocked?”

  Jasmine nodded, “I know how you feel, but you have to trust in yourself and the love you feel for Tom. He is the key to this entire battle, because the more pure love you have, the more powerful you will become” she explained.

  “She cannot even begin to understand pure love, she has too much hatred running through her veins. Anyway, who is to say yet whether this is true love or infatuation? The only thing that gives me hope that this is love is that you have already started to show signs of magic, which is a very good sign.”

  Abby put her head into her hands, “All of this is just too much, I don’t think I’m ready” she said feeling desperate.

  Jasmine patted her on the arm, “Once the time comes, you will surprise yourself and you will be ready. Do you have any more questions that need to be answered right now, or do you think you need some time to digest all of this information?”

  Abby sighed, “I think I need some time” she said.

  Jasmine nodded, “That’s fine, how about you take the rest of the week off, and come back to work on Monday morning. I will pay you for the time off, just like vacation time. Plus, if you need to talk, you know I’m not far” she said, patting her on the arm.

  Abby nodded, “Thank you, that is so nice of you. I think I will take you up on that offer. Tom wants me to meet his family this weekend anyway, so I can use the time to do some shopping for a new dress.”

  Jasmine’s eyes grew wide, “Meeting the parents is a big step, I am very proud of you. Just don’t try to rush things too much, the magic will know when you are ready.”

  Abby nodded and gave Jasmine a hug, “Thanks, I will see you soon” She said as she pushed the button for the elevator. She really wanted to get home and soak in a big tub of hot water and bubbles and let the stress just wash away.

  ***

  Once she made it back into her apartment, she ram some hot water into her tub; she added in some bubbles and slid into the hot water. The water felt so good on her body that she instantly relaxed, laying there limply in the tub, not w
anting to move even a single toe.

  Finally after a few minutes, she decided to give Tom a call. She grabbed her phone and punched his number in and smiled when he answered after just two rings.

  “Hello?” he answered.

  “Hey Tom, it’s me Abby.”

  “Hey sweetie, what are you doing? You are usually in bed by now aren’t you?”

  She smiled; in so short a time he had already gotten used to her schedule.

  “Yeah, usually. But, tonight I went over and had dinner at Jasmine’s apartment, and she gave me the rest of the week off as a sort of vacation for doing so well.”

  Tom whooped over the phone, making her laugh, “Does this mean that I get to spend the entire week with my girl?” he asked her.

  “Yep, I’m all yours until Monday. I was thinking though that you could go shopping with me tomorrow, help me pick out a dress for this weekend. You know more than anyone what is appropriate at one of these shindigs.”

  “Sure babe, I would love to watch you change into different dresses. Maybe you want to shop for some lingerie too?” he asked with a hopeful sound to his voice.

  She laughed, “In your dreams. Well, how about you pick me up around noon?”

  “How about I pick you up at nine, we can have breakfast and make a day of it, then if you want to, you could try out my ridiculously large bed again? No funny business, I promise” He quickly added.

  Her heart pounded, she felt so excited that he wanted to spend so much time with her.

  “That sounds like a great plan to me. I’ll see you in the morning.”

  He whooped again, “Great, see you in the morning, can’t wait” he said as he hung up the phone.

  Abby put her phone back on the side of the tub and dipped her head under the water, muffling her excited screams over spending an entire day with Tom.

  Chapter 12

  The doorbell rang at exactly nine the next morning. She should have known it would, Tom was always on time. She opened the door and smiled at him, while she locked the door behind her.

  “You look cute today” he said to her.

  She looked down at her clothes; she was in full shopping mode, with her hair in a ponytail, jeans, an old shirt, and tennis shoes. She was anything but cute.

  “If you say so, I am in shopping mode and went for comfort.”

  He leaned down and kissed her, “I think you look cute no matter what.”

  She blushed as she slid into his car, ready to hit the stores.

  “Where are we going exactly?” she asked Tom.

  “The Galleria Mall, they have a few stores there with some good choices for this weekend.”

  Abby nodded, “So, is this so formal that I will need like a prom type dress?”

  Tom laughed, “No, more like a cocktail dress, something sexy but still sophisticated.”

  Abby shrugged her shoulders, “I will just trust you on that one” she told him.

  When they pulled up to the mall, she noticed that he parked right next to Saks Fifth Avenue and she nearly choked on the water she was drinking. This was not a store that she would be able to afford.

  “Um, Tom?” she said quietly.

  He looked over at her as he turned off the car, “I can’t afford a pair of panties at this store, much less a dress.”

  He laughed, “Don’t worry about it, my family has an account here that we can charge it to. Besides, you never would have had to buy a dress in the first place if my father wasn’t such a snob, so I can’t let you buy it yourself, it just wouldn’t feel right.”

  “Okay, but weren’t we supposed to go and eat first?” she asked him, feeling her stomach give a little growl at the thought of waiting.

  “Oh, I’m sorry I forgot all about eating. I can’t take my mind of seeing you in some hot dresses I guess. Do you think you can wait until after, or are you too hungry?” he asked her.

  She shrugged her shoulders, “I can wait I guess” she answered, stopping as he opened the door to the store for her.

  Abby felt as though she was in shock as they walked into the store, and found the section that had the cocktail dresses. Immediately a sales person came up to them.

  “Hello, can I help you find something today?” she asked us, in an almost annoyingly perky voice.

  “Yes, I am Tom Murphy and I need a cocktail dress for my girl friend, Abby, we are having a dinner party to make our relationship official with my parents” he told the woman.

  Abby nearly choked again on the word girl friend coming out of his mouth. They had never discussed being exclusive, but she found that she did like the sound of it. Abby watched as the woman’s face lit up, and swore she could practically see dollar signs in her eyes.

  “Mr. Murphy, it is an honor to have you in my section” She said to Tom, and then turned to look at Abby.

  “What size are you dear?” she asked her.

  Abby blushed, “I am a size eight in most clothes” she answered her shyly.

  Tom hugged her around the shoulders as they walked into a dressing room and the lady opened up the first door in, which was marked with VIP. This was becoming a trend, but she was enjoying getting the VIP treatment everywhere they went.

  “Just go on inside, lock the door and get undressed. I will hand over three dresses at a time until we find the one that is just right, okay?” she asked her.

  Abby nodded and walked into the room and shut the door behind her and turned around. She nearly gasped at how large it was, and how nicely decorated it was, she had never seen a changing room that looked anything like this before. She took off her clothes and hung them on the hook that was marked, Customer Clothes, and sat in the big plush chair and waited for the first set of dresses.

  Once the dresses started coming, she would put them on and walk out to the main area and model them for the saleswoman and Tom, who shook his head on nearly all of them. Finally after the twelfth dress, she felt like she had a winner. She looked at herself in the mirror before she walked out to show Tom.

  The dress was black and hugged every curve she had in just the right way to make her look very voluptuous. The top of it was like a halter that wrapped around her neck. It had sparkly beads that covered the entire top, with a small peek-a-boo hole that showed a classy amount of cleavage.

  It looked as though it was made for her, and as she walked out of the dressing room, she could tell from Tom’s face, that she was right.

  “That one is perfect, you look so hot. Do you love it?” he asked her.

  She nodded, her face beaming as she looked into the three way mirror in the main room. Tom looked over at the saleswoman.

  “Wrap it up, along with the other things we spoke about” he said. The woman nodded and rushed out of the room, Abby looked over at Tom.

  “How are they going to wrap it up if I’m still in it?” she asked him.

  He laughed, “That is just a sample that they use to let people try on. You will get one that nobody has ever worn yet. Now go and change back into your regular clothes. I’m starving, let’s go and get something to eat.”

  She started to walk back into the room, but turned around and asked him, “What other stuff were you talking about?”

  Tom shook his head, “Nope that is a surprise, just go and change so we can get out of here will you?” he said as he winked.

  She laughed and went back into the dressing room, curious as to what else he had up his sleeve.

  ***

  When they got back to Tom’s apartment, he finally let her open the bags that he had snuck into his car while she was getting dressed back into her regular clothes at the store. She opened up the largest box first, and it was the dress that she had tried on, only brand new and never touched.

  “Can I hang this in your closet?” she asked, figuring she would just get ready at his house before the party at his father’s hotel.

  He nodded and she walked over to his closet and hung it up, and when she turned around he was standing behind her with another
, smaller box. She took it into her hand and as she opened it she saw a white drawstring bad with Jimmy Choo printed very large on the outside of it. Her heart started pounding as she opened the bag and saw the most beautiful pair of shoes she had ever laid her eyes on. They were silver and strappy, with rhinestones all over them, making them sparkle in the light. The heel on them was at least four inches, if not more, and as she sat on Tom’s bed, he lifted her foot, took off her old worn tennis shoes and slid them onto her feet.

  They were a perfect fit and for a second, she felt as though she was Cinderella and she had just found her prince. She shook her head, making her brain come out of her daydream and looked back up at Tom, nearly speechless.

  “This is too much, you really shouldn’t have gotten all of this for me, I don’t deserve it” She said in a gasp.

  Tom shook his head and rubbed his hands over her leg, “None of these things are nearly as beautiful as you are, and you deserve the world, don’t you ever forget that. Besides, what is the point of having all of this money, if I can’t spoil my girl friend once in a while?” he said to her saying the G word again.

  She grabbed him around his neck and started to kiss him, putting all of the passion and happiness she had in her at that moment into the kiss. He pulled her up and stood her up laughing.

  “Hold on, not that I don’t appreciate that, but there is more.”

  Abby’s mouth dropped open, “How can there be more? You have already done too much.”

  Tom shook his head and pointed to two more boxes, both smaller than the others.

  “I don’t want you to freak out, but that dress and those shoes are great, but you can’t go to a party like this one without all of the accessories. So before you even open the boxes, I will tell you that they contain jewelry, and a purse. I hope that’s okay.”

  Abby stood in shock, thinking that this was way too much for her, she was used to simple living with clothes from Ross, not brand new name brand stuff like this. She sat back down onto the bed.

  “Listen Tom, this really is too much. I’ll tell you what, since this whole dinner thing is much fancier than anything I own, I will wear all of this stuff to meet your dad, but after that, you really have to take it back. I just can’t accept expensive gifts like this, I wouldn’t feel right.”